Taken
by harri.xo
Summary: The police officers aren't usually the ones who get taken.
1. Chapter 1

Matt absentmindedly drummed his fingers across the steering wheel as he kept watch over the entrance to the abandoned warehouse used by the suspect in their latest enquiry for his other nefarious activities. Despite the lateness of the hour, he relished the opportunity to engage in actual police work, rather than being stuck behind a desk, as had been the case since his promotion. He leant back against the headrest of his seat, stretching the muscles in his back as he loosened his tie. As he did so, he caught sight of her in the rear view mirror, adeptly balancing the coffee and sandwiches she had gone to order. He smiled involuntarily, a seemingly natural reaction for him whenever he was in her presence. Opening the car door softly, she slid into the seat beside him and handed him his order.

"I hope that big promotion of yours hasn't changed your preferences for coffee!" she joked teasingly. He smiled and shook his head slowly, gratefully accepting the food and beverage.

"Speaking of which, how did you get stuck with the night shift on this? Surely you could have assigned it to someone else?" She turned to look at him, her expression slightly quizzical.

"Can't have you all turning against me," Matt replied with a smile. "Besides, it's a relief to get away from a desk." He took a sip of his coffee, then attempted to change the subject. "Why, are you sick of me already?"

Jennifer laughed, and Matt felt an answering smile spread across his face. "I'm definitely not sick of you yet, Matty."

Matt went to speak again, but was interrupted when the butt of a gun shattered the windscreen of their car. Matt's hand moved towards his holster; however, their assailant pulled open the car door and placed their gun against his throat. Matt was pulled roughly from the car and saw the same thing happening to Jennifer, before the butt of the gun was slashed across his face and he lost consciousness.


	2. Chapter 2

Upon regaining consciousness, Matt squinted through the darkness in an attempt to determine where he was. He appeared to be stretched out across a slab of concrete, with his back against a brick wall that crumbled slightly if he shifted his position. A frigid breeze whipped around him, causing a dark piece of cloth that hung from a window high above him to flap violently. Having determined that he was at least indoors, Matt decided to assess the damage the blow from the gun had caused to his face. However, when he raised his hands to do so, a dull metallic clang echoed throughout the space, and his left arm snapped backwards, informing him that he was handcuffed to what appeared to be a rusted drainpipe. With his free hand, he gingerly touched the wound on his face, finding that, although the blood had been wiped from his face and the wound had clotted, the gash that remained was deep, and the skin surrounding it raised and tender. He could only imagine its appearance, and the bruises that would surround it. He gingerly shifted position, uncertain if he had sustained any other injuries from the incident, searching his surroundings for Jennifer.

"Jen," he whispered softly, his voice carrying easily through the space. "Jen, are you okay?"

He found himself nervously holding his breath, willing her to reply.

"Jen?" He spoke louder, more urgently. "Jennifer!"

His voice reverberated throughout the space, her name echoing over and over. Matt heard a slight whimper from close by, and he strained his eyes as he scanned his surroundings, searching for her familiar outline.

"Are you alright?" He wasn't expecting the level of tenderness that he heard in his voice.

Another whimper. He heard her shift positions until her face was in his eyeline. The breath rushed from him, and he felt a dull ache in his chest when he saw what had happened to her.

"Oh Jen."


	3. Chapter 3

The right side of her face was swollen and marred with bruises. A trickle of blood, oozing out of a cut beside her right eye, meandered its way down her cheek. Her mouth was taped shut with a dirty, badly torn piece of tape, and her eyes were widened in terror. Her arms were wrapped around the same drainpipe that Matt was chained to, with her hands bound by handcuffs. Shifting his focus from the ache that had settled within his chest since seeing Jennifer's injuries, Matt reached instead into his trouser pocket and retrieved a handkerchief. He carefully scooted closer to Jennifer and, mumbling "I'm sorry if I hurt you," eased the tape from her mouth.

"Thank you," Jennifer's voice sounded rough and hoarse. Matt, blushing slightly, gave her a small smile of acknowledgement as he folded his handkerchief into a neat square. He glanced up at Jen, feeling self-conscious, unsure whether there was etiquette to tending to an injury sustained by a friend, given he was also her boss. Jennifer's voice returned his thoughts to their present reality.

"I...I think my face is bleeding."

"Oh, sorry. Here, let me help you." Matt began to gently dab away the blood from Jennifer's face.

"No need to be sorry, Matty," Jen smiled up at him. "I'm sure it wasn't you that hit me."

Matt gave a small chuckle, shaking his head. "You're right." He went to brush some strands of her hair of her face, when he was struck by how intimate such a gesture would seem. Ignoring the curious flutter in his chest, he instead placed the handkerchief directly against the cut, applying pressure to clot the wound.

"Do you have any idea where we are?" Jen went to look around.

"Hold still a second," Matt gently admonished, placing his thumb under her chin to hold her head still. "I'm guessing its some kind of shed or warehouse. It's too dark to get a clear indication though." He lifted the handkerchief slightly, to see whether the wound had clotted.

"Do you think Jackson's the person responsible?" Jen asked, naming the prime suspect in their current enquiry. Having determined that the wound had clotted, Matt discarded the handkerchief, and leant back against the wall with a sigh.

"I don't know Jen. He'd probably be the top of my list though."


	4. Chapter 4

Matt watched the minute hand on his watch spin slowly across the face, before glancing up at Jennifer. She had fallen asleep some time ago and Matt felt relieved when he saw the peaceful expression on her face. The breeze had picked up, so Matt leant over to wrap her jacket tighter around her shoulders. He paused, startled, when he felt the outline of a mobile phone in the front pocket of her jacket. Their assailants clearly hadn't been too thorough. Drawing the phone out of the pocket, he glanced at the display. Three missed calls. Without checking the call list, Matt hit the redial button, assuming it was a member of their team who had been trying to reach them. The call connected and was picked up almost instantly. Clearly this person had been watching their phone, Matt thought to himself.

"Jen! Thank god you're okay!"

Matt felt the wind rush out of him, and a dull ache settle inside his chest. Of course it had to be Nick who had left all the messages on Jennifer's phone.

"Actually, it's Matt." He couldn't resist adding "Jen's sleeping."

Nick's sigh of relief rushed down the phone line and twisted Matt's stomach painfully. "I'm glad you're both okay, Sarge," Nick said diplomatically, although it was clear to Matt which person he had been most concerned about. "Why haven't you been answering your calls? Dunny's been trying to reach you for hours!"

"Jen and I were attacked by three men while we were staking out Jackson's warehouse. We're being held in what appears to be an abandoned warehouse. We were thinking Jackson might be responsible."

"It can't be Jackson. He was arrested by the Sydney police earlier today. We're waiting for him to arrive so we can interview him about Liam and Michelle Kennelly's murders. Uniform are searching his warehouse now."

"Jackson's been arrested?"

"That's why we've been trying to reach you. Sydney police picked him up around 4 pm. They only thought to contact us at about 7, though."

Matt pushed the hair off his forehead in frustration. "So, Jen and I have been kidnapped by somebody else?"

"That's the most likely explanation. Did you see anything that could help identify your attackers?"

Matt tried to think back over the events of the evening, but everything before he regained conscious seemed to blur together. He leant forward until his head rested against his hands. "It all happened so quickly," he murmured, disappointed with himself. "I didn't have time to look."

"Hold on a sec, Matt." Matt heard the muffled sounds of Nick's voice as he relayed the situation that Jennifer and Matt had found themselves in to someone. He felt relieved when he heard Stanley Wolfe's authoritative voice issuing orders in response. Nick returned to the phone. "We're organising an investigation now. We'll call you with any updates. If Jen remembers anything, call us back with the details." Nick paused for a moment. "Don't worry, Sarge. We'll find you."

"Thanks Nick," Matt replied. He heard the call disconnect. He leant wearily back against the wall, attempting to process what had just occurred. Jackson had been arrested. Someone else was responsible for the situation he and Jen had found themselves in. His mind was occupied with thoughts of who could possibly be responsible as he drifted off to sleep.


End file.
